Refrigerator A Door-in-Door Architecture That Combines Storage, Dispenser and Ice Making in One Pane

This patent describes a refrigerator door architecture that consolidates a viewable storage compartment, an external water and ice dispenser, and an ice-making chamber within a single first door, with a second door providing nested access to that compartment.

The Problem

Refrigerator design has been moving steadily toward door-in-door layouts, with a smaller secondary panel that opens to give access to a frequently-used compartment without releasing all the cold air from the main cabinet. At the same time, premium refrigerators have to host a series of bulky subsystems behind their doors: an automatic ice maker that makes and stores cubes, a through-the-door water and ice dispenser, sometimes a chilled-water tank, and increasingly a transparent or knock-to-see compartment that lets the user inspect contents without opening anything. Fitting all of these into the same door panel without compromising insulation, capacity, or the user experience is a recurring engineering puzzle for major appliance makers.

What This Invention Does

The invention organises the first door so that a storage space, a dispenser, and an ice-making chamber are arranged efficiently within the door itself, while a second door selectively opens onto that storage space. The result is a layered door layout: external dispensing on the front face, a viewable storage compartment behind the second door, and the ice-making subsystem packaged compactly in the same pane. The disclosed embodiments cover the relative placement of the components, how the cold-air flow paths are routed to keep the ice-making chamber properly chilled while the second-door storage space remains accessible, and how the dispenser and ice maker share supply lines.

Key Features

• Door-in-door layout. A first door hosts the integrated subsystems; a second, smaller door opens onto a defined storage space within the first door for everyday use without losing main-cabinet cold air.
• Integrated ice-making chamber. The ice maker is packaged inside the first door rather than the main cabinet, freeing main-cabinet volume for general storage.
• External dispenser pass-through. A water and ice dispenser is integrated into the door face and shares supply paths with the in-door ice maker.
• Visible inner compartment. The compartment behind the second door is configured for at-a-glance access, supporting features such as transparent panels or knock-to-see lighting.
• Cold-air flow management. Internal channels are arranged to keep the ice-making chamber properly cold while the second-door storage compartment is opened independently.

Who Is Behind It?

The applicant is LG Electronics Inc., one of the two largest premium refrigerator manufacturers globally and a long-standing innovator in door-in-door and InstaView refrigerator architectures. The named inventors are Daekil Kang, Jinho Chang, Jaehoon Shin, Wookyung Baik, Changho Seo and Heejun Lee. The Australian application is a divisional of AU 2023282311, with priorities going back to Korean applications KR 10-2022-0177597 (December 2022) and KR 10-2023-0175979 (December 2023). The Australian patent agent is FB Rice in Sydney.

Why It Matters

Premium refrigerators are one of the most patent-active categories in white goods, and the refrigerator door is the part of the appliance the consumer sees and interacts with most. Every increment in usable door-side storage, every reduction in noise from the ice maker, and every additional convenience feature is a competitive lever. Architectures that combine ice making, dispensing and viewable storage into a single, cleanly-styled door pane are particularly valuable because they directly affect the consumer’s perception of the product. The Australian filing extends LG’s protection in a market where premium refrigerator competition is brisk and where the next generation of door-in-door designs will be on showroom floors imminently.

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AU 2026201821 was published in the Australian Official Journal of Patents on 2 April 2026 and is open for public inspection. Patent applications represent inventions that are sought to be protected and do not necessarily reflect commercially available products.